Blog Archives
Flash Movie Review: Celeste and Jesse Forever
There have been many discussions about whether a man and woman can maintain a friendship after being a couple. In my world it has happened, easily for the most part. The girl I dated in 8th grade is still one of my closest friends today. In other relationships, there had to be a time of separation before the friendship could continue forward. I have always felt just because the love aspect did not work out, why would I remove myself from the other facets of the person, that were in synch with mine. Granted, when it comes to the issue of trust being broken, it can be very challenging to proceed with the friendship. I found this movie to be one of the smarter ones to deal with a couple’s separation. Celeste and Jesse, played by Rashida Jones (The Big Year, Our Idiot Brother) and Andy Samberg (That’s My Boy, Friends With Benefits), were going through a divorce while maintaining a close friendship with each other. On a personal level I have seen where that has been hard to do, but I gave credit to Rashida and her writing partner Will McCormack for making this intelligent story more believable. I expected Rashida to be good in this dramatic comedy and was not disappointed. The surprise for me was Andy showing more of a dramatic, serious side than his usual comedic talents. During the scenes where each character talked about seeing other people for dating, I felt they were true to life. The secondary story with Emma Roberts (Valentine’s Day, Nancy Drew) as pop star Riley had a surprise twist to it. Let us face it, relationships take some work; you have to give Celeste and Jesse extra points for working harder at it.
3 stars
Flash Movie Review: The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
What does our physical age really mean? If we are 66 years old, does that mean we cannot enjoy ourselves on a roller coaster? Or what if we were 15 years old; we should not consider climbing Mt. Everest? I have always felt the body was rented, including its daily changes. What was inside was always more important for me and I acted accordingly, never wanting to limit myself. I just try to take pleasure out of the things I do without paying much mind to other people’s notions of how I should act. This beautiful movie really turns our ideas of aging upside down. Benjamin Button, played by Brad Pitt (Moneyball, Fight Club), was abandoned at birth by his father. Though he was just born, Benjamin appeared to be a tiny, elderly man. Believing he would not live long, no one wanted anything to do with the unusual baby. No one that is except for the loving Queenie, played by Taraji P. Henson (Think Like a Man, Date Night), a worker at a senior citizens home. She took in Benjamin as her own son. It was at this home where a resident’s granddaughter named Daisy took an interest in the curious child. Though the movie was long, I was never bored. For me, it felt more like it was of an episodic nature; like watching a book coming to life on the big screen. The film followed the mature Daisy, played by Cate Blanchett (Robin Hood, The Lord of the Rings franchise), as she grew older through the years; while the elderly Benjamin continued to grow younger with each passing year. Everyone was wonderful in their roles, with each pristine scene looking as if it were a part of a family’s cherished photo album. A magnificent movie that showed age to be whatever you wanted it to be.
3 1/2 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Jodhaa Akbar
A monumental love story with a rich historical pedigree, this extravagant movie covered a lot of ground–literally. As I was watching this film, my mind flashed with images of past conflicts that have taken place around the world. A common factor I found present was the clashing of two distinct religions. Each side tried imposing their culture on the opposing force. I do not understand the reasoning behind some religions sending out members in an attempt to convert individuals. Where does this mentality of “my religion is better than yours” come from? Set in the 16th century, the Mughal ruler Jalaluddin Mohammad Akbar, played by Hrithik Roshan (Luck by Chance, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara) formed an alliance with an opposing kingdom by agreeing to marry that ruler’s daughter. This was a radical idea due to the fact Akbar was Muslim and the princess was HIndu. Besides family members having their doubts, ministers of each court were leery of such an arrangement. How could Akbar make this marriage work with the strong willed Princess Jodhaa Bai, played by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan (Bride & Prejudice, Endhiran)? The first 30 minutes of this saga was hard for me to get into; I could not figure out what was going on. But trust me, it will be worth your wait as the story came alive when the focus turned to Akbar. I discovered if I watched this movie with my western sensibilities, it came across as this over the top, melodramatic soap opera. With soaring music that would sweep into the scene, people breaking out into song and a cast of thousands filmed for maximum exposure; this was a big Bollywood production. Granted the fight scenes were a bit hokey, especially with the one to one combatants, where one could see punches missing their intended targets. In spite of the technical deficiencies; the movie bloomed with beautifully colored scenes and told a story about respectfulness, tolerance and one of the greatest loves in history. Brief scene with blood. Hindi/Urdu with English subtitles.
3 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Invictus
Awestruck is what I have been while watching the Olympics. The athletes’ feats have been truly impressive. Not only did similar feelings get stirred in me from watching this uplifting movie; but after recently telling you I was not a fan of team sports, I have to say I became a supporter of the Springboks rugby team of South Africa. And that was in spite of not having a clue about the rules of the game. This was one of Clint Eastwood’s better directed movies in my opinion. It told the inspirational story about Nelson Mandela becoming the country’s first black president. There was already a built in base of dramatic events which Clint shot in a straight forward manner. The casting was brilliant as Morgan Freeman (Driving Miss Daisy, Evan Almighty) played Nelson Mandela and Matt Damon (We Bought a Zoo, The Bourne franchise) played rugby team captain, Francois Pienaar. After his long imprisonment, Nelson presided over a racially divided country. While attending a rugby game, he noticed the white fans were cheering their own country’s team, but the black fans were supporting the opposing team. He formed an idea: What if he could get both sides cheering for the Springboks? Mandela decided to reach out to Pienaar to discuss ways on improving the team’s mediocre performance and get the entire country behind their rugby team. Morgan was tremendous in his role, garnering an Oscar nomination, as well as Matt for his performance. A wonderful film about an incredible man; I understand why they named this film Invictus. It is the name of a poem that ends with the lines: I am the master of my fate. I am the captain of my soul.
3 1/3 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: The Final Season
What is it about Iowa that conjures up images of decent, non-judgemental, honest people in me? Any encounters I have had with people or businesses in Iowa have always been positive. This is why I enjoyed the simple story based on true events, in this heartwarming film. The story took place in Norway, Iowa; the year was 1991. Though I could never see myself living in a small town, the depiction of a simpler time and place was soothing to me. Ken Stock, played by Sean Astin (The Lord of the Rings franchise, Forever Strong) came on board to be the assistant baseball coach to Coach Jim Van Scoyoc, played by Powers Boothe (The Avengers, Sin City). All the townspeople were behind the high school’s baseball team as Coach Van Scoyoc had led the team to 19 consecutive state championships. I am not a big fan of team sports, but I was won over by this baseball team. Prior to the new season, the high school was informed they were to be closed down and merged into a bigger high school. What would happen to the baseball team? In a straightforward style, this movie had a pureness to it; if you will a down home spirit that I enjoyed watching. Granted, it had predictable elements such as a father/son conflict and an adversary/love interest; but, it was okay due to this being a true story. I am sure some scenes were embellished for dramatic effect. All that was missing for me was a bag of peanuts and a Pepsi.
2 2/3 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Water for Elephants
When I read Reese Witherspoon (This Means War, Legally Blonde) reached out and offered her friend Robert Pattinson (Twilight franchise, Remember Me) use of a remote home of hers, to keep the paparazzi away during the rough time he was having with his cheating girlfriend; I wanted to check out this movie where the two actors worked together. Based on the popular novel by Sara Gruen, Robert portrayed Jacob Jankowski the former veterinarian student that dropped out of Cornell when his parents were killed, leaving him penniless and homeless. With no family or attachments to hold him back, Jacob one night snuck onto a passing train while he was walking the rails. No ordinary freight train, this was the train of a traveling circus owned by the unpredictable August, played by Christoph Waltz (Carnage, The Three Musketeers). The circus’ star attraction was August’s wife Marlena, played by Reese Witherspoon (This Means War, Legally Blonde). For me, the star of this movie besides Rosie the elephant was Christoph; perfect playing a maniacal, jealous, ruthless character. Robert did a good job with his role; gratefully I did not see any of his Twilight’s Edward acting in this role. Though Reese looked the part, I found her acting was sadly lacking. This may explain why there was little chemistry between her and Robert, something that was needed to carry this beautiful story along. I thought the film looked wonderful, giving a true sense to the period of time the story took place. It was nice that Reese and Robert maintained a friendship after this movie was made; I just wish they could have had more sparks between them, to keep up with Christoph.
2 2/3 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Repo Men
These guys could easily be foot soldiers in Hannibal Lecter’s army. At the very least I wish I could hire them for my credit department; it would be one way to get my customers to pay on time. Set in the future, best friends Remy and Jake, played by Jude Law (Hugo, Sherlock Holmes franchise) and Forest Whitaker (The Last King of Scotland, The Experiment), were bad ass repo men. Their employer was in the business of selling body organs. If you had a bad heart or liver, they could easily provide a brand new one, along with a finance plan to make payments. But be careful because if you are late on your payments, the company will send out their collectors to repossess the organ. Remy and Jake were two of the top collectors. Having heard every excuse and promise for making payments; they stayed emotionally detached, doing their job with complete disregard to the health of the poor debtor. I totally understood this considering my position as my company’s credit manager. When one of Remy’s retrievals went wrong, the tables were turned on him as he became the recipient of a top of the line, new heart. This futuristic story touched on topics that are currently being discussed on this country’s health system. There was plenty of action in this film, with Jude and Forest doing an admirable job of acting. I found parts of the movie interesting; that made me think, for example, about the impact of large corporations’ policies on our society. The ending of this violent movie felt like a cop out for me; leaving the parts I did not understand incomplete. There were bloody and graphic scenes throughout this film and are in the movie trailer.
2 1/2 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Step Up Revolution
I figured out the purpose for these Step Up movies. They are the assisted living homes for the former dancers of the television show, So You Think You Can Dance. After the dancers end their run on the TV show, they participate in these movies. Maybe some will progress to other acting roles; but the majority, I believe, will remain long term residents. In this latest version, former SYTYCD contestant Kathryn McCormack played Emily, the daughter of a wealthy property developer. Accompanying her dad to Miami where he had business dealings; Emily met Sean, played by former Calvin Klein underwear model Ryan Guzman, down by the beach. It just so happened everyone around was dancing; imagine that. Besides working at the hotel where Emily and her Dad were staying, Sean was a leader of a dance flash mob called The Mob. When her father’s development plan jeopardized Sean’s neighborhood, Emily had to choose sides. We have seen this story a thousand times, there was nothing original here. Viewing this film, I had to wonder what came first: the dance numbers or the script. Gratefully I did not have to see this movie in the 3D version, which was being heavily rotated at my theater. Why would anyone want to have a leg kick appear like it was smacking them in the face? If you just want to see an extended music video, then this is the movie for you. The wild choreographed dance scenes were lively and enjoyable, some were rather creative. But with the lack of acting skills and a tired script, my interest level was low. I think the residents of this movie franchise are in need of some desperate rehabbing.
2 stars
Flash Movie Review: Ondine
Maybe it was magic or a belief, even a mythical character; whichever you decide to choose will enhance this sweet movie. I am sure there have been times where you could not explain something with simple logic. The time I was working on a weight machine and my eyes began to hurt. A reasonable person would have stopped lifting the weights, but not me. I turned my head away to the side just before a cable snapped, missing my turned face. I could never explain it. In this imaginative film Irish fisherman Syracuse, played by Colin Farrell (Alexander, Pride and Glory), could not explain the nearly drowned girl he captured in his fishing net. Adding to the mystery were the changes that began to occur around him since this female came into his life. Syracuse’s daughter believed the woman who called herself Ondine, played by Alicja Bachelda (Trade, Stealth), was a Selke (water nymph). Filmed along the beautiful coast of Ireland, this movie was an enchanting blend of mythology and stark reality. Colin put in an impressive performance as the fisherman who was a recovering alcoholic and a father to an ailing daughter with failing kidneys. I found Alicja to be wonderfully mysterious in her role. Could Ondine really be a Selke or was she something more real. Bring a touch of fanciful thinking with you and find out the answer for yourself, in this curious film.
3 stars — DVD
Flash Movie Review: Ruby Sparks
What are the keywords or qualities you use to describe what you want in a perfect mate? Ones I have heard from different friends have been funny, sweet and smart. But I have also heard people say they are looking for someone blonde or tall, with facial hair or without. My keywords have been trust, humorous, kind, along with the ability to say a sentence that begins with the words “I feel.” Imagine if you could simply order your perfect mate; think of all the time that could be saved through the dating process. This was the idea behind this movie’s story. Calvin Weir-Fields, played by Paul Dano (There Will be Blood, Being Flynn), was a famous writer being plagued with writer’s block. Not until a mysterious woman appeared in his dreams, did Calvin finally have his muse and the stuck words inside came out, flooding his anxious typewriter paper. As a writer, I know the characters inside of me feel completely real. In Calvin’s case, the special woman from his dreams called Ruby Sparks, played by Zoe Kazan (It’s Complicated, Me and Orson Welles), actually came to life. Real life couple Paul and Zoe were ideal for their characters; they should be since Zoe was also the writer of the screenplay. I loved the way the characters grew through the film, giving the audience several things to think about regarding relationships. The supporting cast was solid, adding humorous spots throughout the story. Because I enjoyed this movie, I forgave it for the predictable ending. This was an interesting movie that was not only fun to watch, but made me think about what was really important to have in a relationship.
3 stars
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